Varsity Vocabulary: Words for Standardized Tests PDF
Preview Varsity Vocabulary: Words for Standardized Tests
Varsity Vocabulary ~ Words for Standardized Tests ~ by Erin I. McDermott, M.Ed.-ESL Copyright @ 2006 Vocalis Ltd., Waterbury, Connecticut USA All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, printing, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or any other form, without prior written permission of the publisher. Published by: Vocalis Ltd., 100 Avalon Circle, Waterbury, CT 06710 USA www.vocalis.com ISBN-10: 1932653-74-0 / ISBN-13: 9781932653748 UPC #: 825329 3740 2 7 Produced in the U.S.A. 2 Table of Contents Subject Page 1. Introduction....................................................................4 2. Parts of Speech................................................................5 3. Vocabulary Words.....................................................6-56 A .............................................................................6-11 B............................................................................12-14 C............................................................................15-18 D...........................................................................19-20 E............................................................................21-22 F............................................................................23-24 G...........................................................................25-26 H...........................................................................27-28 I ...........................................................................29-30 J.............................................................................31-32 K-L........................................................................33-34 M...........................................................................35-36 N...........................................................................37-38 O...........................................................................39-40 P............................................................................41-42 Q...........................................................................43-44 R............................................................................45-46 S............................................................................47-48 T............................................................................49-50 U................................................................................51 V...........................................................................52-53 W..........................................................................54-55 X-Z.............................................................................56 4. Phrases / Bridge Words............................................57-58 5. Parts of Words..........................................................59-62 Prefixes.................................................................59-60 Roots.....................................................................60-61 Suffixes......................................................................62 6. Commonly-confused Words....................................63-65 7. Helpful Hints.................................................................66 8. Exercises.................................................................67-79 9. Answers...................................................................80-85 3 Introduction Vocabulary is the foundation of language, our most effective communication tool. The words we use help us to tell others what we know, feel and want. Therefore, this is the area most heavily examined on standardized tests, such as the TOEFL, TOEIC, etc. For English language students, learning new vocabulary can be a daunting task. English has many words borrowed from other languages, so its spelling and pronunciation are often irregular. However, English is fast becoming the world language and must be learned in order to travel in and work with other countries. Varsity Vocabulary:Words for Standardized Tests is a reference guide which focuses on the English vocabulary words most often found on international standardized tests. It is aimed specifically at intermediate to advanced students preparing to take an exam soon, but it can be studied by all English language learners trying to increase their vocabulary knowledge. In addition, it is beneficial for those who wish to practice pronunciation, as all of the entries are spoken in clear, unaccented American English. Here, the words are defined, pronounced and featured in sample sentences for context. The set-up of Varsity Vocabulary is as follows: First, the parts of speech are defined, since each of the featured words is then identified as a noun, verb, adjective, etc. The main section presents 200-plus vocabulary words, along with their definitions, pronunciation and examples. After this, there is a section on prefixes, roots and suffixes, essential for analyzing unfamiliar words. Finally, review exercises help to reinforce these newly-learned terms. With increased attention being paid to standardized tests, vocabulary development is more important than ever. This product attempts to give English language-learning students a working knowledge of the most often-tested vocabulary words. We hope that the information put forth here will help students to pass their exams, as well as improve their general command of the English language. 4 Parts of Speech Adjective - a descriptive word used to modify a noun or pronoun (adj.) The violinist played a beautiful solo at the concert. Adverb - a word that explains how and is used to modify a verb, (adv.) adjective or another adverb; adverbs usually end in "ly" He was extremely generous with his donations. Conjunction -a word which joins words or groups of words (conj.) The telephone rang but no one answered it. Interjection - an expressive word used to show emotion (int.) Oh! I forgot about the meeting at three o'clock. Noun - a person, place or thing (noun) Let's gather together to celebrate the anniversary. Preposition - a word used to show the relation of a noun or (prep.) pronoun to some other word in the sentence. Jenna met us after lunch. Pronoun - a word used instead of a person, place or thing. (pro.) She always went shopping on Thursdays. Verb - a word that expresses action or helps to make a statement. (verb) Why are the boys running down the street? This product contains mostly adjectives, nouns and verbs, but there is a handful of adverbs among the vocabulary words. 5 Vocabulary Words - A - abbreviate (verb) - to shorten; to reduce in size or length He abbreviated his name from Victor to Vic. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- aberration (noun) - an oddity; something that is different from normal Since Melissa is the top student in the class, it was an aberration that she failed the science exam. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- abhor (verb) - to detest; to loathe; to dislike intensely Mary values honesty in people and thus, she abhors all lies. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- abolish (verb) - to ban; to put an end to The government abolished the making and sale of liquor during Prohibition in the 1920s. 6 abstract (adjective) / abstract (verb) / abstract (noun) Adj. - theoretical; in thought only; not material Because ideas are in our mind, they are considered abstract. V. - to remove, extract or take away from Miners abstract ore from the Caro Tin Mines of Nevada. N. - a summary; a brief report The scientist wrote an abstract about the drug study. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- abysmal (adjective) - awful; terrible; pertaining to the great depth of the ocean With her father on trial for murder and her mother nowhere to be found, it was an abysmal situation for Molly. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- accelerate (verb) - to go faster; to quicken the pace The laws of physics state that a wheel will accelerate as it is rolling down a hill. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- accentuate (verb) - to highlight; to emphasize; to stress The professor only accentuated his appearance as bookish by wearing the thick horn-rimmed glasses. 7 acclimate (verb) - to adapt; to become used or accustomed to It takes some time to acclimate when moving to a new country because the culture can be so different. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- accomplice (noun) - a helper or aide in a criminal act or wrongdoing The thief had an accomplice with whom he planned the heist. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- acrimony (noun) - bitterness among people; animosity There was acrimony between the brothers because the older one was always favored by the father. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- acronym (noun) - a word formed from the initial letters of a name Many people don't realize that SCUBA is an acronym, which stands for "self-contained underwater apparatus." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- adage (noun) - a saying, maxim or proverb "The early bird catches the worm" is a well-known adage attributed to Benjamin Franklin. 8 adept (verb) - skilled or knowledgeable at a task or job Billy is not nervous about his upcoming operation, because he has an adept surgeon. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- adjacent (adjective) - located next to; adjoining There was a fire in the house adjacent to mine, and now my neighbors have to move. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- admonish (verb) - to warn or caution against The teacher admonished her students when she saw them "sharing" answers during the test. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- advocate (noun) / advocate (verb) N. - a person who defends or supports a person or cause It is the job of an attorney to advocate for his clients. V. - to support or be in favor of someone or something; to defend If I get in trouble with the Internal Revenue Service for not paying all of the due taxes, I hope my attorney will do a good job of advocating for me. 9 affluent (adjective) - rich; being well off The expensive shops in Beverly Hills cater to an affluent crowd. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ambiguous (adjective) - uncertain; not very clear That foreign film had such an ambiguous ending that we weren't sure if the lead character died or just left town. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- apex (noun) - the peak; the highest point Winning the coveted Pulitzer Prize was the apex of his journalism career. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- archaic (adjective) - very old-fashioned; obsolete; out of date Riding a horse to travel somewhere is now regarded as an archaic form of transportation. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- arduous (adjective) - strenuous; quite difficult Taking the bus through the mountains of the Andes proved to be an arduous trip. 10
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